


in our kingdom by the sea

by andnowforyaya



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-16
Updated: 2018-05-16
Packaged: 2019-04-03 22:15:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14005968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/andnowforyaya/pseuds/andnowforyaya
Summary: Hoseok has been carrying this secret inside of him for almost year, and his time with Kihyun is running out.





	in our kingdom by the sea

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ReeLeeV](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ReeLeeV/gifts).



Hoseok first approached Kihyun in Kihyun's grandmother's flower shop with a fistful of green weeds and yellow flowers in his hand and a huge, ear-to-ear smile on his face. That smile melted Kihyun's heart instantly, even when Hoseok -- still a stranger -- thrust the weeds at Kihyun's chest from across the narrow counter and said, "Would you like to go out with me?"

Kihyun was so startled he'd dropped the bouquet he was working on, the delicate and colorful blooms bruising upon impact with the floor, in order to take the fistful of weeds from Hoseok's hand.

He said, "Is this a joke?" and Hoseok's smile dimmed ever so slightly, confusion and uncertainty flitting across his eyes. 

"Yes?" Hoseok offered, then frowned, watching Kihyun carefully and mirroring the puckered, pinched expression on Kihyun's face. "No," he amended quickly. "It's not a joke. I am asking you out on a date. But I've made a mistake, haven't I? Isn't this how it's done?"

"In what country?" Kihyun eyed the weeds in his hand. They'd been plucked from the earth recently, still smelled fresh and felt damp. He imagined this burly, handsome man with broad shoulders and thick ropes for arms squatting by the pavement or in a field somewhere, delicately choosing and picking each stem. He stuffed the weeds in a little narrow cylindrical vase, glass with a purple ribbon around the middle, and decided he kind of liked the strange, careless look of them on the counter. 

" _This_ country," Hoseok said, eyes wide. "I've been -- studying. And I thought. All the movies say -- Changkyunnie said -- Ah." His eyes lit up again, and then disappeared behind his eyelids as he smiled. "Changkyunnie has played a joke on me again. Nevertheless. I've asked you, which, I think, is still the custom."

"I don't know you," Kihyun said cautiously. He was the only customer in the shop and Kihyun was lying about not knowing him. It was two weeks into his summer vacation and he'd returned to neighborhood on the edges of Busan by the ocean just as he always did every summer, only this time he was old enough to be minding his grandmother's flower shop alone while she took the vacation she'd always wanted to take (she was going with her septuagenarian girlfriends to Paris, Amsterdam, and Venice) before he had to go back to school in the fall, and he'd seen this man around town. At the bookstore, at the cafe down the street, on the beach. Kihyun liked to go for long walks on the sand in the morning, before anyone else was awake to interrupt the tranquility of the open air, the huge expanse of water stretched out before him, and sometimes he saw this man on his walks, sitting at the end of the pier, watching the ocean like he wanted to dive into it and never surface again.

He'd never seen him before this summer, so Kihyun wondered if he'd recently moved.

"My name is Hoseok," Hoseok said. "I want to go--"

"On a date with me, yes," Kihyun finished for him, blushing and feeling his ears turn hot and red. "I'm Kihyun, and I get off work at seven."

.

They went to a restaurant right on the shore with seating that spilled out onto the sandy beach, and Hoseok ordered a plate full of freshly sliced, raw fish with a chili dipping sauce and Kihyun ordered the grilled chicken. He politely turned down the fish when Hoseok offered it to him after their food arrived, and Hoseok only shrugged, a sly grin on his face and a twinkle in his eye. "More for me, then," he said, and dove into the plate of food with the enthusiasm of a child coming across his favorite toy he thought he'd misplaced.  

Hoseok was wearing cotton drawstring pants and a thin cotton shirt with most of the buttons undone and slipped off his sandals as soon as they sat down, wiggling his toes into the sand.

Kihyun had not changed out of his light blue shorts and white t-shirt after work. He liked watching Hoseok eat with such unadulterated joy in his expression. As Hoseok inhaled his food, Kihyun spoke a bit about his grandmother and her flowers, about school, about what he was studying, and learned very little about Hoseok during the first half of their date because Hoseok had questions about everything that came of out Kihyun's mouth.

"What's a too-lip?" was his first question, so Kihyun explained. It was a kind of flower and Amsterdam was famous for them. His grandmother was going to the city and she'd talked about smuggling some back into the country, which Kihyun had advised her against.

"What's it like in the fall? What kinds of books do you read? What do you mean, you're studying marine biology?"

Kihyun described fall to Hoseok, as best as he could. Painted a picture of the leaves turning gold and red, of them fluttering to the ground. The smell of spice and cloves permeating the air, and the crisp weather that promised bitter cold when the season turned to winter. Fall made Kihyun think of school, and books, and he told Hoseok about his favorites: books about the origins of species and studies of ecosystems and also trashy historical romance, his guilty pleasure. And he studied marine biology. That's what that meant.

Hoseok swallowed a piece of perfectly cut pink salmon and flushed, turning his face away to look out across the sand and at the sea. "Where I'm from, I guess we don't have a particular name for studying the ocean."

"Where you're from, there's no fall? No ocean?" Kihyun asked.

"No," Hoseok said. "There's just the cold season. Everything moves very slow in cold season. And we're very far away from water."

The sun was setting, painting the sky in strokes of pink, orange, and purple. The colors reflected off the surface of the ocean, the sunlight shimmering across it like so many glass shards. Hoseok looked like he didn't belong on earth. His skin was so pale it reminded Kihyun of pearls, not like Kihyun's own skin that had turned a warm shade of bronze from being in the sun, and he moved like he was underwater, slow and deliberate and floating. Disconnected. Kihyun leaned into Hoseok's words across the table, nearly getting his shirt into his chicken. He was struck by how curious he was about Hoseok, how much he wanted to know how he came to be the way he was, and how if you looked deep into Hoseok's eyes, you could see they weren't black or brown but a deep, murky blue.

"Where is that? Where are you from?" Kihyun asked. He couldn't imagine living somewhere that was always cold, with the cold settling into your bones like ink onto paper. He shivered despite the warm breeze that ruffled his black hair. 

Hoseok was still looking out at the ocean. He raised his hand and pointed a finger out, toward the sun. "Over there," he said.

Kihyun squinted his eyes at Hoseok's finger and said, "Japan?"

After a moment, Hoseok nodded. "Yes, Japan."

.

They go on another date after that. And another, and another. Hoseok was easy company, fun and a bit childish, his youthful energy contagious. On their fifth date, Kihyun took Hoseok to his favorite little taco stand on the beach, and they sat at the end of a pier jutting out into the water and ate and drank fizzy drinks. Hoseok had never had Diet Coke before.

"This is amazing!" Hoseok cried out, eyes alight with excitement as he held the cold can of soda in front of him near Kihyun's face. The straw in the opening rattled around but no liquid sloshed out.

Kihyun laughed. Hoseok's innocent joy at new things was something he decided he really liked. "I can't believe you've never had it before."

"I've had Sprite," Hoseok said, taking a long sip of his drink and smacking his lips after. "But not this. It's incredible. The taste is so unique. And the way it makes your tongue pop and tingle!"

Kihyun said, "So I take it you've never had beer?"

"Oh, I have," Hoseok said, nodding. He'd finished his taco a few minutes ago and was now eyeing Kihyun's hungrily and not-so-subtly. Kihyun held it up to him and fed him a bite, and Hoseok sighed happily. "I don't like it much," he continued. "Makes me feel funny."

"Alcohol will do that to you."

"We don't have much alcohol where I'm from," Hoseok admitted. Kihyun raised his eyebrow at that. Where had Hoseok been raised -- a monastery? "Not much supply," he explained at Kihyun's inquisitive expression. "Small town, the mountains--"

"Right, right. Small town, always covered in snow, made it difficult to get things from the outside world." Kihyun repeated what Hoseok had told him about how he grew up. "So you came here, where it's the opposite of that, and it's nice to let loose every once in a while, isn't it? What do you do, anyway?"

Hoseok shrugged. "I swim."

"What, like, professionally? I thought there was no water where you're from."

"But we had pools," Hoseok said with a wink.

Kihyun looked at him sideways and decided to believe him. "Sure."

The wind picked up suddenly and caught the edge of the plate Kihyun was holding, flipping it and its contents right into Kihyun's face and then into the water. In the time it took Kihyun to blink and swipe at the food that was stuck to his face, he heard a splash. Hoseok was gone. Kihyun rose to his feet, watching the water anxiously, but he needn't have, as Hoseok surfaced just a few moments later, holding the plate above his head and treading water effortlessly. Kihyun grinned, coming down onto his knees and reaching forward to take the plate from Hoseok. "Thanks," he said. "Definitely don't want to litter."

He put the sopping plate on the pier and then gasped when cold fingers grasped his wrist and pulled, and then he was falling, toppling into the water with an embarrassingly high-pitched yelp.

When he broke the surface with a gasp, Hoseok was laughing at him. 

"That was mean!" Kihyun protested, spitting salt water out of his mouth. He was just an okay swimmer, so he wasn't able to tread water as effortlessly as Hoseok could. His shoulders sank below the surface a few times as his body bobbed with the waves.

Hoseok's fist smacked the water as he laughed. "Your face! You looked so surprised. So cute!"

Kihyun blushed at being called cute. His anger dissipated quickly, and he tried to splash Hoseok with water but struggled with the effort of keeping his head above water. 

"Here," Hoseok said, wading closer. Kihyun felt the warmth of his body beside him, and then Hoseok's arm was around his waist, and he was keeping them both afloat. But Kihyun couldn't relax, because now Hoseok was touching him, and Kihyun was acutely aware of the hard lines of Hoseok's muscles pressed against Kihyun's skin.

"Th-thank you," Kihyun managed.

They didn't stay in the water for long. The sun was already sinking below the horizon, sapping the warmth from the water as well as light from the sky. When Kihyun started shivering, Hoseok dragged them both out. A hotel nearby who were customers of Kihyun's grandmother's flower shop let them use a couple of towels to dry off.

"When can I see you again?" Hoseok asked, before they parted ways, his hand on Kihyun's wrist, keeping him close.

"Tomorrow?" Kihyun said breathlessly.

Hoseok nodded, a grin on his face. He reached up to brush Kihyun's hair back from his face with delicate fingers, and Kihyun swooned, rocking forward.

"Can't wait," Hoseok said, but he turned away before Kihyun could kiss him.

.

Already, summer was slipping from between Kihyun's fingers. The days were becoming shorter, and the breeze coming off the ocean was cooler than it had been at summer's start. They'd found a slightly rocky area of the beach where little tide-pools teemed with life and tiny fish and coral. Kihyun took pictures with his camera, shuffling around the pools in a squat, careful not to lean too far over and fall in. Hoseok watched him.

"How long are you staying?" Kihyun asked.

"As long as I can," Hoseok said. "I quite like it here. It's not what I expected, but that's a good thing."

"What did you expect?"

"Well." Kihyun could hear the grin in Hoseok's voice. "I didn't expect you."

Kihyun flushed and paused, breathing slowly. He looked up at Hoseok through the viewfinder of his camera and snapped a couple of photos. They were awful because Hoseok was backlit by the sun, but they were perfect because they were of Hoseok. He stood up and shifted around, stepping carefully between the tide pools to stand behind Hoseok so that he could take a few photos of the man with the ocean as his backdrop. Hoseok played along, posing for a few pictures before the modeling felt too forced and ridiculous, and then he was laughing as the water exploded behind him.

"Got it!" Kihyun shouted a little too happily. He felt bubbly and excited, and ran over to Hoseok to show him how the picture turned out. "You look great."

"Because you are talented," Hoseok said. "You could make a rock look great."

"Hey, rocks are amazing subjects. Don't diss rocks."

Hoseok hummed, still laughing, and drew Kihyun in by his wrist and into his arms. "You are so cute when you get excited by the life around you. I wish I could have known you earlier."

"You know me now," Kihyun mumbled, looking up in Hoseok's eyes. They looked so clear in this moment that they looked waterfall blue, the color of the sky on a cloudless day. Kihyun felt dizzy with the excitement of a great photo, the ocean everywhere and in front of him, with Hoseok's gaze and sweet smile. He leaned forward and kissed him, and Hoseok's lips were soft and yielding, slightly salty. He felt Hoseok's hand form a fist against the small of Kihyun's back, and then he pulled him in so close their bodies were separated only by the thread of their shirts. 

When Hoseok pulled away, Kihyun was still dizzy, and also breathless. Their chests were still pressed together, and he could feel how quickly Hoseok's heart was beating, just as quickly as his own. "Yes, I know you now," Hoseok whispered.

They kissed again, and again, and again.

.

They slept together that night. Hoseok brought Kihyun over to his apartment by the sea -- his roommate was out or had already gone to bed -- and they undressed each other in the living room, leaving their clothes in a trail from the front door to the bedroom. Hoseok laid Kihyun out on his bed and kissed him until his lips were red and bruised and sore, and then he trailed his lips down, down, down, until he could take Kihyun into his mouth. Kihyun returned the favor, after, using his fingers where his lips couldn't reach, and when Hoseok came he shouted, and Kihyun let him rut against his mouth.

It was good. It was good to explore each other's bodies slowly, as they both came down, and Kihyun kissed the salt from Hoseok's mouth.

.

Summer ended a few weeks later. Kihyun returned to the city for classes, Hoseok's number in his phone and twenty unread messages from him by the time he'd settled back into his apartment he shared with his best friend Minhyuk. Hoseok promised to visit as much as he could, and he'd love if Kihyun could visit, too. They would make this work.

Minhyuk was home, ready with a beer and takeout for dinner and a grin. "Anything happen at the beach?" he asked.

Kihyun knew he sounded like a lovesick teenager, but he couldn't help but sigh happily as he thought of Hoseok, and said, "Yeah, I met someone."

.

"I can feel you staring at me," Kihyun mumbled under his breath, adjusting his glasses with a finger so they were higher up on the bridge of his nose. He looked up from his textbook and notes and frowned.

Hoseok was grinning in his seat across from Kihyun. His hair was blond and his eyes seemed bluer than usual, and he'd gone and gotten himself a leather jacket to wear across his broad shoulders, which was really just not fair. "You're just so cute, even when you're studying."

"Are you sure this is okay for you?" Kihyun asked, feeling a light blush form across his face. "This must be boring for you. I'm so sorry -- I want to hang out but it's midterm season."

"Any time I get to spend with you is more than enough for me," Hoseok said. "It's a blessing."

Kihyun kicked him lightly under the table. They were out in a cafe with mugs of lukewarm coffee drinks in front of them. Hoseok had already polished off his own piece of cheesecake and half of Kihyun's, what remained of the dessert on a lone plate near Kihyun's textbook. "You're too much," Kihyun whispered, trying to hide his delight.

"As long as you can put away your books later and we can snuggle and kiss and stuff in bed, I'm good."

Kihyun blushed harder and pushed his nose against his textbook again. "You can't just say stuff like that! Are you sure you don't want to hang out with Minhyuk? He'd be more than happy to take you around the city."

"I saw the city last time," Hoseok said.

"Well, it's a big city. There's lots to see."

"I might start to think you're trying to get rid of me, Kihyunnie," Hoseok teased, to which Kihyun adamantly shook his head.

"I just hate to think I'm boring you."

Hoseok's smile turned soft. He reached out across the table with his hand and Kihyun slowly reached out his hand also. Hoseok threaded their fingers together, pressed their palms together, and said, "Never."

Kihyun sighed, looking down at his notes and then back up at Hoseok's serene expression on his face, and he pushed his papers to the side. It wouldn't hurt to give his boyfriend some attention before hunkering down to study again. Five minutes, nothing more.

.

"Didn't you say it was always winter in your hometown?"

Hoseok was visiting again and there was a blanket of snow over the ground about two inches thick. Hoseok had arrived in so many thick layers Kihyun had told him he thought his boyfriend had been replaced by a balloon.

"I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be offended by that," Hoseok had said with a pout, and Kihyun had hugged Hoseok's arm and nuzzled his neck and said, "But a very cute balloon," which seemed to satisfy the other man.

Now, they were in front of Seoul's City Hall at the ice rink the city erected every winter, and Hoseok was trying to stand up in his white rented skates without falling over. He reached out to steady himself with a hand on Kihyun's shoulder. 

"It was always winter but we never strapped knives to our feet and tried to glide across ice in them," Hoseok grumbled, cheeks pink and rosy, his breath misting in front of him in white clouds. He took a step and nearly turned his ankle on the blade of his skate, wobbling dangerously before Kihyun reached out to steady him again.

Kihyun tried not to laugh. He really did. But Hoseok was normally so capable and steady that seeing him barely able to take two steps without falling over was kind of nice and grounding. It brought Hoseok down a notch. He wasn't perfect, just very nearly so, and Kihyun probably loved him. His heart raced with the realization, his own cheeks flushing as the thought took root in his mind, giddy laughter spilling from his lips. He held Hoseok's hand and walked them both very slowly to the rink's edge, and when they got there he didn't want to let go.

"Just trust me, and hold onto me," Kihyun offered gently, stepping out onto the ice. He wasn't a great skater himself, but he could keep his balance and shuffle in a forward direction.

Hoseok stepped out onto the ice. His hand was tight around Kihyun's, and his feet were uncertain and uncoordinated, but Kihyun didn't let him fall.

.

On the day before Hoseok had to go back to the little town by the sea, Kihyun took him to Lotte World. It was Spring and he couldn't believe Hoseok had never ridden a roller coaster before, but it didn't matter to Kihyun much because it meant Hoseok clung to him like a baby koala when they rode the rides. They kissed on the carousal and shared cotton candy and Hoseok played one of those target-shooting games and won Kihyun a little stuffed bunny keychain, which Kihyun immediately put onto the strap of his bag proudly.

After Lotte World, they stepped outside to walk on the cherry blossom-lined path around Seokchon Lake. The sun was beginning to set, and Hoseok's hand was in Kihyun's as they strolled, side by side, pink petals from fallen blossoms underfoot. The lake was still, the surface of the water like glass. Every once in a while, a breeze would sweep more pink and white blossoms from the branches into the air, and the lake would move with ripples. It was quiet. Hoseok was quiet. Kihyun squeezed his hand and looked at him, heart heavy though he didn't know why.

"What's wrong?" he asked. Hoseok didn't look at him. He was looking at the lake, and he slowed his steps until they stopped. Then he strode up to the very edge of the path to the wooden railing that separated park guests from the water. The ground slanted down here, and they were no longer on pavement, but grass and dirt. Hoseok leaned his elbows up onto the railing and sighed, while Kihyun stepped up to be next to him and lay his head on Hoseok's shoulder. "You can tell me," Kihyun whispered.

"It's nothing," Hoseok said at first. The sun was beginning to set, the light cast by its rays warm and golden. Then he said, twisting his hands together, "I'm not sure I should tell you."

Kihyun tried not to let the words send him spiraling into panic. This was Hoseok -- sweet, calm, understanding, naive, supportive. Whatever was bothering Hoseok, they could surely get through it together. He took one of Hoseok's hands in his, playing with his fingers.

"Whatever is on your mind, I want to help you. We're in this together, right?" Kihyun swallowed, hesitant and anxiously waiting for Hoseok's response.

The breeze carried petals into the sky and onto the lake's surface, and Hoseok said, "I love you."

All the air left Kihyun's lungs. Hoseok's fingers tightened around Kihyun's hand before he could pull away. "I know you know I love you, even though this is the first time I've said it out loud. I'm crazy about you. I'm so glad I met you. I think you're -- perfect. For me, anyway. And I think you feel the same way about me."

"Hoseok," Kihyun mumbled, blushing.

"Please, listen," Hoseok insisted. "I love you. But I'm -- I haven't been very truthful about who I am. What I am. And I want to tell you."

Kihyun looked at Hoseok sharply, and found Hoseok starting at him, his eyes intense and deep, deep blue. The irises seemed to be twisting, lulling, and Kihyun tried to resist the urge to kiss him. "What do you mean?" he whispered.

Hoseok said, "I'm not really from Japan."

"Then where are you from?"

With a sigh, Hoseok unlaced their fingers and reached up to brush cherry blossom petals from Kihyun's hair and shoulders. He said, "The sea."

Which made no sense at all. Pursing his lips, Kihyun pushed himself away from Hoseok and tried to search for the truth in Hoseok's face, in his expression, but didn't find anything that helped, just his own reflection in Hoseok's eyes. "Don't -- what the hell does that mean?"

"It means I'm from the sea. I was born there. I lived there. And I have to go back."

"What, like, on a boat?" Kihyun asked incredulously. It was strange, but it wasn't the most far-fetched notion. There were such things as house-boats, and maybe Hoseok meant he was really from a small fishing village somewhere. But Hoseok shook his head, and Kihyun's shoulders slumped as realization dawned on him. "You're breaking up with me. You're telling me this -- weird story and breaking up with me."

"I'm not--"

"What, I'm supposed to believe you're from the ocean? What the hell does that even mean, Hoseok?"

Hoseok stepped close, crowding against him and pinning Kihyun against his chest so that Kihyun could feel how hard and fast his heart was hammering inside of him. "I'm telling the truth. I can show you," Hoseok said. "I can show you, when you come to visit me next weekend. If you're still planning to, after this. But I wanted to give you fair warning. Because after I show you, everything will change."

"Why can't you tell me?" Kihyun asked. Despite his confusion, he sank against Hoseok, finding comfort in his familiar warmth and scent.

Hoseok said, "Because you'll think I'm crazy. And I'm not."

"What are you really saying?"

"I'm saying, I love you, and I want to share my secret with you," Hoseok whispered against Kihyun's temple. He kissed him there, Kihyun's skin tingling with it.

Later that night when Kihyun was getting ready for bed, after Kihyun had walked Hoseok to the train and the train had pulled away from the station, Kihyun could still feel the kiss against his temple, lingering and cool.

.

The landscape changed gradually, from the cluster of buildings of the city to smaller towns, to bright green fields with the mountains in the distance, and finally to the sea. Kihyun had made this trip by train so many times before, every summer since forever, but today felt different. It felt final. He played with the little bunny keychain on the strap of his bag with nervous fingers and watched the landscape change outside of the large train windows. When the food cart came by he ordered a bulgogi sandwich for himself, but it remained on his lap for the remainder of the trip because even thinking about eating it made his stomach roil.

And so when he arrived at the station in Busan, he was hungry and tired and cranky, and he still had to catch a bus and ride it about another hour to the neighborhood where Kihyun's grandmother's flower shop was and where Hoseok lived. Hoseok had offered to pick him up -- a few months into when they first started dating and now, he'd learned how to drive and said he could borrow Changkyun's car, but when Kihyun had asked him when he'd gotten his license, Hoseok had remained suspiciously quiet.

Kihyun decided he could take the bus on his own, and plus, he'd need the extra time to himself.

He'd thought about not coming for all of about two seconds. The morning after Hoseok had gone, Kihyun had missed him so terribly he thought an essential part of him had withered away into nothing. Hoseok had wormed his way into Kihyun's heart and Kihyun had truly meant it when he'd told the other man they were in this together. A piece of Kihyun belonged to Hoseok, and -- Kihyun hoped -- a piece of Hoseok belonged to Kihyun.

He rode the bus with his bag in his lap and his arms hugged around it. He hadn't even told his grandmother he was visiting, because he wasn't sure he'd have the emotional energy to deal with whatever Hoseok was going to reveal to him _and_ his grandmother's loving nagging. But not he wondered if he should had told her. At least, if things went wrong, he'd have a place to stay for the night.

It was already evening by the time he reached his stop on the bus. Kihyun loved this time of day, especially here, because the sky was a crazy lovely painting of pink and orange and purple and the ocean was a reflection of it, and the sun was sinking into the horizon and made the ocean look like it was on fire. He didn't have time to admire the picturesque view, though, because Hoseok was waiting for him at the bus stop.

Hoseok took his bag from him, and kissed him on the cheek in greeting. "You came," he said.

"I had to," Kihyun responded.

"I love you," Hoseok said.

Kihyun sucked in a breath. He held onto Hoseok's hand as they walked the few blocks from the bus stop to Hoseok's apartment he still shared with Changkyun. Kihyun whispered, "I love you, too."

.

Hoseok had cooked for Kihyun's arrival, and kicked Changkyun out for the night. Changkyun would be okay, though, staying over at his friend's place, Hoseok explained. He'd made braised chicken and rice and sides of seasoned vegetables, and Kihyun took a seat and looked at it all laid out on the table and couldn't eat it.

Hoseok frowned. "Why not?"

Kihyun chuckled sheepishly in his seat. "I'm too nervous," he explained honestly. "When are you going to tell me your secret?"

Hoseok paused after spooning some chicken onto his bowl of rice, staring at it thoughtfully. Finally, he said, "I was thinking tonight. We could go for a walk on the pier, head out there, and I could show you."

Kihyun shivered at the thought. He had no reason not to trust Hoseok, but the idea of going somewhere alone with someone by the ocean in the dark raised self-preserving alarms in his head. But he pushed them down and nodded. "I trust you."

Hoseok smiled softly, showing his teeth, his dimple in his cheek. "Okay."

They ate, their ankles touching and crossing underneath the table.

.

The night was cool and scented by the salt of the ocean. The beach was closed at this time, so there were no people around, and no lights except the lingering light from the storefronts lining the boardwalk. The stars were bright, and the ocean twinkled with them. Kihyun and Hoseok walked the familiar path down the boardwalk, and then they walked down to the sand, and to the water's edge, hand in hand.

Kihyun's heart was thumping in his ears. Hoseok had been so quiet this whole time, only holding Kihyun's hand and squeezing it every once in a while as though in reassurance. They shared smiles and glances but no words, and now the salt water was lapping at Kihyun's shoes and Hoseok was letting go, stepping out of his sandals, and taking another step into the waves.

"Wait--" Kihyun stepped forward, too, throwing off his flip flops, panicked and confused. "I don't understand!"

Hoseok looked back and said, "I'm going to show you my secret, now, because it's easier than saying it. Just stay right there, okay? And don't be scared."

Kihyun hesitated, taking a step back again, and whimpered when Hoseok turned back around and kept walking. What was he doing? Even though it was late in the spring, the ocean at this time was still ice-cold. Hoseok was going to get sick! Or worse...

Hoseok took another step and suddenly sank low, so the water was almost up to his shoulders, and Kihyun darted forward, splashing into the water with his steps, but Hoseok turned back and he was grinning, laughing. "It's okay," Hoseok told him. "I'm fine! Look, it's fine." He reached down and pulled up his shirt and stripped it off, crumpling it up into a ball and throwing it at Kihyun, who tried to catch it but ended up needing to fish it out of the water. In the time Kihyun took to get Hoseok's shirt, Hoseok had disappeared under the surface of the waves.

Kihyun whimpered again, looking out at the sea, holding Hoseok's soaked shirt to his chest. He watched the waves carefully, waiting for Hoseok to emerge from them, and counted quietly to himself as the seconds passed by. "Five...six...seven..." At fifteen, he considered running back to the boardwalk and calling for help, but then at twenty, Hoseok's head broke the surface of the water.

"Hoseok!" Kihyun called, throwing Hoseok's shirt to the side and running deeper into the water. It was unwieldy and difficult, trying to make his legs move as the water reached his knees, and then his waist, and then he was wading in water up to the chest, his teeth chattering with the cold.

Hoseok moved fluidly to him, and then circled around him once, smooth and steady and fast. Kihyun spun in a circle trying to follow him, and saw in the corner of his eyes a flash of silver, like a fin. He screamed.

"There's something in the water!" Kihyun shouted, trying to point, but Hoseok was next to him now, shushing him, coaxing him to float on his back, which Kihyun did with Hoseok's help.

"It's me," Hoseok said. Something emerged from the water, and Kihyun gaped, eyes wide. If Hoseok weren't holding him up he surely would have choked and drowned. "See, now?"

Hoseok had a tail. A silver-scaled, dolphin-liked tail. He flapped it around a few times above water before letting it fall again, and turned to Kihyun with a shy little smirk on his face.

"You," Kihyun spluttered. "You're a mermaid."

Hoseok made a face. "That's what humans call us, yes. Though I would prefer mer-person."

Kihyun shivered violently, the cold catching up to him. "Th-this is your secret?"

Hoseok nodded. "I wanted to tell you, because..." He hesitated, looking at Kihyun from under his lashes.

"Because what?" Kihyun pressed.

"Because my time on land is running out," Hoseok said. "I have to go home soon."

Kihyun swallowed, and coughed as he unintentionally swallowed too much salt water. "How soon?" he managed, as Hoseok swam them both closer to shore. In a few moments, they were out of the water, and Hoseok had legs again, and was completely naked in the moonlight as he carried Kihyun in his arms.

"The beginning of summer," Hoseok said, setting Kihyun down onto his feet. "A year from when I arrived."

"That's so soon," Kihyun said, feeling tears well up into his eyes. He brushed at them with the back of his hand angrily. Water lapped at his feet and sand sifted between and around his toes.

"I know, baby," Hoseok said, pulling him close in his arms. They swayed like that against each other, the moon high over their heads and the waves lapping at their ankles.

"You need to put some clothes on," Kihyun said with a sniffle.

.

It was summer again. Kihyun looked up at the clock on the wall behind the counter and found that barely any time had passed since he last looked at it. He leaned onto the counter and sighed with his chin in his palm as the door opened and a pair of tourists came in, probably just to escape the heat for a short moment, since they did a circuit around the flowers and plants and then left without buying anything. 

He checked the canvas tote bag at his feet for the fifth time in the past hour. In the bag sat freshly baked red bean buns, two crisp red apples, a few sweet tangerines, and a couple of sticks of snacking sausage from the convenience store. He'd also packed a red checkered picnic blanket, some water, and he planned on bringing something pretty with him from the shop, too, when he closed up. Tapping his feet impatiently, he looked at the clock again.

It was one minute past six in the evening. With a silent cheer, Kihyun nearly bounded over the counter with his bag, grabbed his keys from his pocket, and quickly switched the "OPEN" sign to "COME BACK SOON" on the door as he locked the door to his grandmother's flower shop. Shouldering his bag, he took off toward the beach at a run.

He knew just where to go -- to the very end of the boardwalk, and then beyond, past the dunes of sand and beach grass and into where the ground started to become rocky and a bit slippery from the waves and mist, and cliffs began to rise, replacing the buildings in the distance. As he went, he remembered to pick up a few flat stones if he noticed them and to drop them into his pocket. He came across a small and familiar grotto, a cavern-like opening in the cliff-face that was hidden from view from the beach or boardwalk, where the water was close and calm, after about ten minutes of walking and climbing over rocks. He slipped into the grotto, carefully stepping where he knew the ground would hold and the stone would be mostly dry, and set his bag down, breathing out a sigh of relief. His shirt was sticking to his front with sweat from the effort of getting here, but it was worth it.

Kihyun took the flat stones he'd collected from his short journey and flipped them into the water. It didn't take long for a shape to emerge under the surface of the water, its outline growing clearer and clearer and it neared the surface. Then with a great splash (and Kihyun's yelp), Hoseok broke the surface of the water with a wide grin, flipping his hair aggressively to shower Kihyun with sea water.

"You made it!" Hoseok called, his voice echoing in the little cave.

"Of course I did," Kihyun said. "Don't I always?"

Hoseok tucked his chin, looking sheepish as he grinned. "I still love you," he said.

Kihyun reached out across the water for him, and Hoseok waded closer, until they were touching, until Kihyun was close enough to get down onto his knees and lean forward and kiss him, warm lips to cold, the scent of ocean salt. "I still love you, too," Kihyun said. "Now, let's eat."

.

**Author's Note:**

> comments/kudos appreciated :)


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